The End of Summer
by NightKitty666
Summary: Everything seems to be going smoothly for Coulson and the team, until a disastrous mission puts the life of one of their agents in danger. Will Coulson be able to save her? How will he come to terms with it when he realises just how much she means to him? Features my OC, Alexa Summers.
1. Chapter 1

It was a simple mission: extract data on Hydra operations from a small, poorly defended base in the middle of Siberia. There were minimal risks, as there were only two or three soldiers staffing the base. May was able to sneak in and ICE them before they even had a clue anyone was there. As Mack and Bobbi dragged them out to the Quinjet, Coulson and Summers stood by while Daisy retrieved the intel off of their outdated computer system. It seemed so easy, over in minutes. Until a red warning light started flashing and a timer started counting down on the computer screen.

"What's happening?" Coulson asked worriedly.

"It's a safety backup on their system," Daisy explained quickly. "Looks like if they don't enter a code every five minutes, the place arms itself to explode."

"I'm getting really tired of these traps," sighed Coulson. "Alright, we have to get out of here. We've got thirty seconds."

"Wait, there's one more piece of information we need. Without it this will have been a wasted trip."

"Daisy, we don't have time!" Coulson exclaimed.

Summers stepped up to the computer and pushed Daisy aside. "You go," she urged. "I'll get the data and meet you outside."

Coulson's heart jumped at the thought of leaving Summers behind, not wanting to walk away without the agent he'd grown to care so much about, but she pushed him and Daisy forcefully towards the door.

"Go," she commanded calmly, "I'm right behind you."

Reluctantly, he followed Daisy as she headed out to the safety of the Quinjet. As soon as they had left the building, Coulson stopped, ordering Daisy to go on without him. He couldn't bear to go any further without knowing that Summers was going to be safe. He glanced nervously down at his watch. Ten seconds. "Where is she?" he whispered anxiously to himself. With five seconds to go, he looked up from his watch to see her sprinting down the long corridor towards the exit. He was sure she was going to make it. She was so close to the door now, so close to safety...

The building exploded.

XXXXX

"No!" Coulson screamed as he watched the fire and flying debris consume Summers. The flames wrapped around her, the bits of rubble knocked her off her feet and sent her flying forward. She landed heavily just outside the remains of the building and Coulson was beside her before he could think, tugging her to safety. He knelt down and pressed two fingers desperately to her neck, relief washing through him as he felt a faint pulse. He looked up at her face to see her watching him absently.

"Summers?" he asked with a shaking voice.

He noticed her hand moving slightly, her fist relaxing and opening to reveal the flash drive that they'd used to extract the data. "I got it," she whispered hoarsely. He quickly took the drive and slipped it into his pocket.

"Thank you, Summers. But you gotta stay with me, okay? I won't have you die over this. You're gonna be okay, just stay with me."

She tried to listen to him, to focus on his voice and the words he was saying, but pain was coursing through her body and it was overwhelming her. Her vision became blurred and Coulson's voice became very distant, and slowly she was dragged down into the blackness.

Coulson watched in panic as her eyes fell shut. "Summers? Summers?! Alexa!?" He grabbed her wrist and felt for a pulse, feeling a weak throbbing beneath his fingers that told him she was still alive. Looking down at her body, he knew it wouldn't be for long. Blood coated her clothes as it trickled out from multiple wounds, caused by debris that had embedded itself in her chest and abdomen. There was a deep gash on her head, and her limbs were marked with burns where the flames had got to them. Coulson fumbled for his comms unit. "Fitzsimmons, I need you. Summers has been badly hurt. Hurry!" His voice broke as he finished the command, and soon tears were running down his cheeks as he watched the life slowly draining out of the woman who meant so much to him. A realisation struck him as he watched her pale face and he leaned down to whisper in her ear, "Alexa, don't die. Please don't die. Don't leave me. I need you. Alexa, I... I love you."

Just as he'd said this, he was pushed out of the way by Simmons as she hurried to attend to her patient. "Oh, God," she muttered as she quickly knelt to assess the damage. She saw the shallow rise and fall of Summers' chest and knew that she was still alive, but only barely. "Fitz, I need pressure bandages," she commanded to her partner. "We need to slow the bleeding." Fitz reached into the medical bag he'd grabbed off the Quinjet and grasped the bandages, shoving them into Simmons' hands. "I'll need help to tie them," she said quickly, and he crouched beside her to assist. As they tightly wrapped the bandages around Summers' wounds, Simmons glanced up at Coulson, who was sobbing quietly next to them. "Coulson, I need you to do something," she said to get his attention, and his eyes immediately snapped up to meet hers.

"Anything," he replied shakily.

"She's barely breathing. She'll need us to manually supply her with oxygen. There's a face mask and oxygen pump in the bag." She'd barely gotten the words out before he was scrambling to grab the pump, his hands trembling slightly. He clamped it over her nose and mouth and began the regular compressions of the bag to force air into her lungs.

As Simmons tied off the last of the bandages, Fitz called over the comms, "Mack, we need the stretcher from the Quinjet." Moments later, the muscled agent appeared with the stretcher, cursing under his breath at the sight of his injured colleague and friend. He placed the stretcher down so that he and Coulson could lift Summers carefully onto it. As they carried her back to the Quinjet, Simmons taking over the operating of the oxygen mask, Coulson felt his tears continue to fall; they blurred his vision, causing him to stumble a couple times over the rough terrain. He was glad when they were safely back in the Quinjet and May piloted the craft at top speed back towards the base.

"Don't give up on me, Alexa. We're getting you the help you need," he sobbed quietly to her. "Just hold on a little longer. Please."


	2. Chapter 2

The ride back to the base felt like the longest trip any of them had ever taken. The Quinjet wasn't equipped with any medical supplies, so all they could do for Summers was to try and stop her from bleeding out during the journey. While Simmons kept tightening and retightening the bandages and Mack took over the pumping of the oxygen mask, Coulson sat next to Summers with his hand gripping her wrist, constantly monitoring her pulse. His tears had dried up as a feeling of numbness had spread through him. He couldn't believe that this was happening, that what was supposed to be such a simple mission had gone so wrong. All he knew was that he couldn't lose Summers. He would manually revive her if he had to, but he prayed it wouldn't come to that. He wouldn't even let himself think about the worst-case scenario. If she died, if he couldn't revive her, then he'd lose her forever. After all, the only trace of something that could bring people back from the dead had ended up in John Garrett's veins and had been obliterated alongside him by the 084. Even if it hadn't been, it was so vile that he'd never consider using it on someone else, much less the woman he loved. But the thought of losing her was equally painful.

The silence that had descended over the jet was broken only by the hiss of the oxygen pump and Fitz's footsteps as he paced anxiously back and forth. It was so quiet that Coulson almost jumped when May suddenly spoke to send the request to land over the radio to the base. They received a prompt reply and within minutes were touching down in the hangar. During the landing, Mack and Fitz had secured the stretcher onto the Quinjet's gurney, which they wheeled out of the jet as soon as the door had opened.

Coulson followed close behind as Summers was rushed to the medical bay. She was taken into the operating room, but Simmons stopped him from coming in behind her, saying there wasn't enough room. He stood anxiously by the viewing window as Simmons and her lab assistants got to work. They attached a blood bag and several IVs to Summers arm, as well as clipping a heart rate monitor to her finger and replacing the oxygen pump with a proper mask that was attached to a ventilator. Coulson watched in horror as they peeled off the blood-soaked bandages, but had to turn away when Simmons picked up a scalpel and began to operate. He sank into a nearby chair and buried his head in his hands as he waited for it to be over.

XXXXX

Many hours passed with no word from the operating theatre, only technicians hurrying in and out to replenish supplies. Several of the other agents came to check on Summers' progress, but they would leave when they found out that there was no news, hoping the situation would improve by their next visit. Only Coulson stayed, glued to the chair outside the theatre. He peaked through the window into the room a few times, but had to look away at the sickening sight of Summers' blood everywhere. Eventually he settled for nervously waiting in his chair and wringing his hands together in anticipation.

When at last Simmons emerged from the theatre, he was on his feet in a second, but the look on her face made his chest tighten.

"No..." he whispered in disbelief.

"We did everything we could," she said tearfully.

"So... She's gone?" Tears were welling up in his eyes again, and one began to roll slowly down his cheek.

"Not yet. But her injuries were very severe. The explosion tore through many of her vital organs. We've tried to repair the damage, and we've put her on life support, but she won't last long." Her lip began to tremble as she added, "if you want to say goodbye, I'd do it now, while she's still with us." Simmons lowered her head and began to cry silently, knowing that she'd failed her friend by not being able to save her. One look at the crying scientist sent the last of Coulson's composure crumbling and he too broke down completely. He pulled Simmons into a hug and they wept onto each other's shoulders, devastated by the loss of their friend. Coulson still couldn't find a way to reconcile his mind to the fact that Summers was gone, or would be very shortly. He didn't know how he'd go on without her.

Eventually, Simmons calmed herself down enough to pull out of Coulson's embrace and say, "I need to go tell the others. That'll give you a moment alone with her." Coulson nodded, then watched as she left the room and began to climb the stairs to the common area where everyone was gathered. Once he was alone, he turned towards the operating theatre, but he couldn't make his feet move towards it. He couldn't go in there when he knew what was waiting for him. But he realised that if he didn't do this now, he might lose her before he'd been able to say goodbye. Holding onto that thought for strength, he walked slowly into the room.

The theatre had been thoroughly cleaned after the operation, then turned into a post-op room. Coulson glanced around it, looking from the slowly beeping heart monitor to the IV bags hung on their stands, then finally to the bed. Summers was lying there, as pale as the sheets covering her body. Needles were attached along a good portion of both of her arms, and a tube had been inserted into her throat and connected to a ventilator, which hissed loudly with each breath it delivered. Despite all the machines she was hooked up to, she looked peaceful, serene. It was a small comfort to Coulson to know that at least she was no longer in pain, and wouldn't be when the end finally came. He pulled a chair over to the bedside and sat beside her still form, closing his shaking hand around her pale and cold one.

"Alexa," he started, but found himself at a loss for words. How was he supposed to find a way to tell her everything he felt about her? He watched her calm face, tightened his grip on her hand, and tried again. "Alexa, I don't know what I'm going to do without you. You mean so much to me, and the worst part is that I never got to tell you. I don't know if you ever realised, but... I love you. Your dedication to the job, to your friends, the kindness you show for others; I don't know what to do without it. You are such an amazing person, and I can't believe that that's gone now. I don't know how everything went so wrong so quickly, I just hope that now you're finally at peace." He wiped the tears off his face before leaning down to place a soft kiss on her forehead. "Rest in peace, Alexa. I love you."

A noise from the doorway made him look up to see his colleagues standing outside, waiting for him to finish. They all wore various looks of despair and shock; some were crying, some just looked on as if watching a scene in a movie, something that wasn't real. Coulson stood up and moved to the side to allow everyone in, and one by one they moved to the bedside, whispering tearful goodbyes to their teammate and hugging her one last time. Daisy, once she had run out of words to say to her fallen friend, moved over to Coulson and looked at him carefully through teary red eyes.

"Did you mean what you said to her?" she asked tentatively.

"What?" he replied quickly.

"That you love her."

"You heard?" He began to look worried.

"Yeah. I think most of us did. Is it true?"

His gaze dropped to the floor and he nodded slowly, nervous about what his colleagues would think of him for this.

"Coulson, I... I'm so sorry," was Daisy's response, making him look up at her in slight surprise. "If there's anything I can do..."

"Thank you. Right now I just need some air." He pushed past her and hurried out of the room, running up the stairs until he reached his office. He slammed the door shut behind him and flipped the lock before sinking into his desk chair. The sight of something sparkling on his desk made him look over, and he caught sight of the brightly decorated Christmas card that Summers had given him a few months ago. He kept it on his desk when no one was around because it reminded him of her and her bright personality. Picking the card up gingerly, he turned it over a few times before holding it to his chest and starting to sob.


	3. Chapter 3

Over the next week, there was no change in Summers' condition. Her heart beat slowly on as the agents around her tried to come to terms with her situation. They ran raids on Hydra bases using the information extracted from Siberia, all the while wishing the ICER rounds they put into the enemy soldiers were real bullets in revenge for what Hydra did to their friend. Everyone had been eager to go on the missions except Coulson, who sat by Summers' bed every day, bitterly waiting for the end to come. If she was going to die, he was going to make sure she wasn't alone when it happened. He'd set up a small command centre in her room so that he could stay in contact with his team while they were in the field without having to leave Summers' side. It gave him a small amount of satisfaction to hear the ICER fire over the comms and know that they were taking down the organisation that hurt Summers piece by piece. Watching Hydra bases getting taken off the map reassured him that Summers' last act as an agent had not been in vain.

In between missions, Fitzsimmons would join him in the room to monitor Summers. The other agents stayed away, not being able to face the thought that they could watch her die at any moment. They tried spending time together in the common area, playing video games or talking, but an uncomfortable silence would soon settle over them and one by one they'd all excuse themselves to retreat back to their bunks. Eventually they gave up trying and would go straight from the Quinjet to their own rooms.

Some of the agents managed to distract themselves from reality when they were alone, but Daisy was one of the ones who never could. She'd sit on her bed staring at her phone and the pictures it had of her and Summers. They'd become good friends since they'd met all those months ago, and Daisy couldn't believe how quickly it had ended.

One night, she was lying in bed desperately willing sleep to come, with no success. She tried to think of the happy memories she's shared with Summers, but her mind always kept coming back to the image she had in her head of Summers lying almost dead in a hospital bed. As the sadness and anger at losing her friend grew, the room around her began to shake. She quickly composed herself and the tremors stopped, but she realised that she'd not had a whole lot of practice at controlling her powers in such stressful circumstances. She thought back to her time at Afterlife and the advice her mother had given her, and as past conversations with Jiaying began to fill her head, one little snippet suddenly caught her attention. She sat straight up in bed as the words flashed around her brain, wondering whether they could mean something or if she was just grasping at straws. Swinging her legs over the side of the bed, she decided she had to go find out.

XXXXX

Simmons mulled around the lab looking for a project to take her mind off the dying woman in the next room. Just as she picked up some files to look through, the door to the lab swung open, and she looked up in surprise to see Daisy walking towards her.

"Daisy, what are you doing here so late?" she asked, confused.

"I have an idea and I know it's crazy but hear me out, okay?" she replied quickly. "It's an idea to save Summers."

Simmons looked at her in shock. "To save her? Daisy, I know you don't want to accept this but there's nothing we can do for her. The damage was too extensive."

"I know, I know, but this is something that goes beyond normal medicine."

"Don't tell me you're talking about a new version of the GH325 serum."

"What? No. I'm talking about Terrigenesis."

"Terrigenesis? You must be kidding."

"No, I'm not kidding. I remembered something my mother told me at Afterlife, that people are reborn when they go through Terrigenesis. Their bodies are reborn. Simmons, think about it, she'd be reborn without all the fatal wounds. Her body would heal itself."

"But Daisy, think about the number of variables here. We don't know if she has the DNA that would allow her to change, even if she did then we don't know if it would actually heal her wounds. It's complete madness!" Simmons said in exasperation.

"What's going on?" a sleep-deprived voice asked from the doorway to Summers' room. Coulson was watching them wearily, his face pale and dark circles under his eyes from lack of sleep. He'd been drawn to the door by Simmons' agitated tone.

Daisy turned to him. "I think there's a possibility we can save Summers by putting her through Terrigenesis," she explained quickly.

"You what?" Coulson thought his exhausted state was making him hear things.

"I think the transformation might be able to heal her."

"Sir, this theory has absolutely no evidence," Simmons argued.

Before Daisy could reply, an alarm went off behind Coulson. All three hurried to Summers' bed, where the heart monitor was warning them that her pulse was dropping rapidly. "Her heart will stop soon," Simmons told them quietly.

"Shouldn't we at least try to save her?" Daisy pushed.

"We have absolutely no idea if it will do anything at all," replied Simmons.

Coulson turned to look at her. "But there's a chance it could work?"

"A microscopically small chance, yes."

"Then do it."

"What?" Simmons was surprised that her boss would agree to such untested methods. "For a start, we don't even know if she has the genetic markers that would allow her to..."

"There isn't time to find out," Daisy interrupted. "Jemma, she is going to die. Unless we do this then we know she's going to die. This is our only chance to save her, but we have to do it now."

Coulson added, "we have to at least try. Please, Jemma."

Simmons looked between the two of them, seeing the desperate hope in their eyes, and conceded. "Alright," she muttered as she ran past them into the lab, returning moments later with a container of tainted fish oil pills that they'd recovered. She tipped a pill into her hand and approached the bed. "Here goes nothing," she said to herself as she dropped the pill down Summers' throat and forced her to swallow it. She stepped back and joined Daisy and Coulson, who were anxiously waiting for something to happen. As Summers' pulse got slower and slower, Coulson clenched his fists, desperately willing it to work, but still there was no change. Just as he was letting go of the last of his hope, he saw the tips of Summers' fingers turning to stone. The cocoon spread up her arms and out across her whole body, until she was fully enveloped. His wide eyes glanced over at Daisy and Simmons, who looked equally shocked.

"It worked..." Daisy whispered.

"Not yet," Simmons said nervously. "We don't know if it will heal her."

Coulson approached the bed slowly, but as he reached out to touch the cocoon, it exploded in a ball of blue light. Everyone quickly shielded their eyes as shards flew outwards and struck the walls, falling heavily to the floor. Once the pieces had settled, they looked up to see Summers lying on the bed, eyes wide open and staring at them in shock.


	4. Chapter 4

"It worked. It really worked!" Simmons gasped in awe. "Daisy, you're brilliant!"

"Alexa, are you okay?" Coulson was moving back towards the bed to check on her. The heart monitor had been damaged in the blast, so he had no idea if her vitals were okay, but she was awake and aware and alive.

Summers tried to speak, but was impeded by the breathing tube down her throat. Simmons noticed and went to pull the tube out gently, earning a slight groan of pain from Summers. She looked up at Coulson with a hint of fear in her eyes and whispered, "what the hell is going on?"

"How much do you remember?" he asked softly.

She pondered for a moment before replying, "I remember the base and the explosion and then... nothing. What happened to me?"

"You were badly injured, severe wounds to a lot of your vital organs," he explained. "Simmons and her team did their best, but they couldn't do anything to save you. You were dying. And then..." He gestured to Daisy, allowing her to continue the story.

She stepped closer to the bed. "I had an idea that seemed completely crazy but I thought was our only chance at saving you. I thought if we gave you one of those tainted fish oil things and tried to induce Terrigenesis, then the transformation might heal you and you'd be okay. We had no idea if it'd work, or if you had the right genes for it in the first place, but we didn't know what else to do. I know it's a huge thing to process, but please don't freak out. It was our only option."

Summers looked down at herself in shock. "So... I'm Inhuman?" she said slowly.

"Yes, it appears so," responded Simmons.

"And that means that... I have powers now?"

"Yes, but it's too early to determine what they are. I'd have to run some tests, make some observations..."

"Simmons, stop," warned Coulson. "Alexa, are you okay with all this?"

"Inhuman," she muttered to herself. "That's... awesome."

"Really?" Coulson asked in surprise.

"Hey!" Daisy teased. "Being Inhuman is pretty cool. I think you're just jealous."

"I'm not gonna lie," Summers added, "I was pretty jealous of you, at least once you'd managed to control your powers. I was always curious to see if I had Inhuman DNA, I was just never brave enough to find out."

"But you're okay that we made that decision for you?" Coulson was worried that she was taking this so well.

"Yeah. I mean, better awesome and powered than dead." She leaned back on the pillows, feeling weariness seeping through her. Although Terrigenesis had healed her significantly, she still had a bit left to do by herself.

Simmons noticed her energy waning and walked over to her. "You need to rest. This will have taken a toll on your body and you need to save your strength. I'll take some blood samples and run a quick scan on your wounds to see how much you've healed, but you try to get some sleep. Are you feeling any pain?"

"No, I'm okay. Just tired," she said sleepily. "But I want to be moved to the containment room. I know I won't be able to control any powers I have for a while, and I don't want to do any damage."

"That's probably a good idea," agreed Coulson. "Simmons, will you be able to keep an eye on her down there?"

"Of course, let's move you there now and get you comfortable. Sir, would you be able to give me a hand?"

"Whatever you need. Daisy, can you go wake everyone up and tell them the good news?"

She smiled and turned towards the door. "Sure." She paused at the door and added, "Summers, it's great to have you back," before continuing out in the direction of the bunks.

Once she was gone, Coulson and Simmons carefully lifted Summers onto a gurney and manoeuvred her down to the containment room, where they gently laid her on the bed. Simmons set her up with a new heart monitor, which would alert them remotely if there was an issue. She then took the blood she needed and used a portable scanner to assess the internal condition of Summers' wounds. Coulson stood awkwardly in the corner, not having enough medical knowledge to be able to help. When she was finished, she told him, "I'll take these back to the lab and set the computer to run some tests, then finish the analysis in the morning." She turned to Summers, who was on the verge of falling asleep. "Do you need anything before I leave?" She shook her head wearily. "Okay. I'll go get started then. But I am so happy that you're alright." Not knowing what else to say, she took her equipment and headed back to the lab.

Coulson settled on to the couch on the other side of the room, making himself comfortable for the night. He knew he wouldn't sleep if he was away from Summers, so he decided to stay in the room with her. He knew it was a risk to have nothing protecting him from a potentially dangerous powered person, but it was a risk he was willing to take if it meant he could stay close to her. He looked across the room to see her eyes shut, her breathing calm and steady, her face peaceful as she fell into a much-needed sleep. He too realised how exhausted he was; he'd barely slept while she'd been critical, not wanting to be absent from what could be her final moments. Now that she was safe, though, he allowed himself to close his eyes and welcomed in the sleep his body was yearning for.

XXXXX

When he awoke, he knew it was morning by the sunrise on the screen in the containment room. He sat up on the couch and looked over to the bed, where Summers was still in a deep sleep. Stretching, he got up and walked quietly over to her, not wanting to disturb her. The heart monitor was beeping steadily, the sound reassuring to his concerned mind, and he checked the display to see that her pulse was strong and regular. It was such a relief after the weak and erratic beeps he'd gotten used to over the past week. He reached a hand down to run a finger tenderly over her arm, lightly enough not to wake her, but just as he did his prosthetic began to buzz. He looked down to see an incoming message from Simmons, and immediately he was tense again, worried about what results her analysis had yielded. He tapped the message to reveal that it said only: 'Sir, results are in. Come up to the lab when you can.'

With a glance at Summers to make sure she would be alright, he left the containment room and hurried up to the lab, where Simmons was waiting for him. She knew he'd be rushing to see her as soon as he'd received her message.

"What did you find?" he asked, cutting right to the chase.

Simmons smiled reassuringly. "She seems to have healed remarkably well. There are only scars left where her wounds were, and nothing unusual in her blood samples. Her DNA analysis came back drastically different, but we expected to see that based on the results we gathered when Daisy went through Terrigenesis. Overall, there appears to be nothing to worry about."

"So she's going to be okay?" He could feel a huge weight being lifted off his chest at the news.

"She's going to be fine. However, I would recommend bringing the Inhuman Assessment and Training Officer here when the time comes for her to learn how to control her powers, rather than sending her off to The Cocoon. It's highly unlikely that there will be any degenerative effects, but just to be safe I'd like to keep her here for ongoing medical observation. Would that be alright, sir?"

"Of course," he replied without hesitation. Coulson was delighted to hear that Summers would be staying here rather than leaving the base for what could be months. He'd hate to go so long without seeing her. "Is that everything?"

"Yes, sir." She could tell he was anxious to get back to Summers.

"Good. And Jemma, thank you."

She smiled warmly at him. "It was my pleasure, sir."

He returned the smile before turning to the door and walking swiftly out of the lab and back to the containment room. He opened the door carefully to stop it from making any noise and closed it softly behind him, then padded over to the bed where Summers' eyes were still closed. He began to lightly stroke her arm, and the touch made her shift slightly before her eyes slowly fluttered open. Her vision gradually came into focus and she saw Coulson standing over her, watching her with his soft gaze.

"Morning," she whispered sleepily.

"Morning," he replied quietly, smiling down at her.

"How are you?" she asked, sounding very tired.

"I'm fine. But more importantly, how are you? How do you feel?"

She shifted to make herself more comfortable before replying, "good. Alive." She paused before adding, "grateful."

"Daisy's the one who saved your life," he reminded her.

She placed a hand over his, which was still resting on her arm. "Yes, but she's not the one who stayed with me the whole time. I woke up during the night and saw you asleep on the couch. I know you stayed here all night. And..." She paused, debating whether or not to continue. "I remember what you said to me when I was hurt. I was just conscious enough to hear you. I don't think you realised."

His heart rate sped up as he worked out what she was referring to. She'd heard his confession, the one he'd made when she was bleeding out in front of him.

"I know... how you feel," she finished, confirming what he feared. He didn't know how to react, whether to try denying that it ever happened or sheepishly admit it on the very small chance that she felt the same way. He stood there awkwardly as he tried to get a read on her and what she thought of him for this.

She looked down at her hands as she saw how embarrassed she'd made him, regretting her decision to mention it. She didn't even know if he'd meant it or not, and she couldn't decide whether to press and find out. Before she could say anything, Coulson turned away from her and started pacing slowly around the room. "I don't... I don't know what to say," he stammered nervously. "I don't know what you're hoping for me to say."

"I'm hoping that you'll tell me the truth," she replied steadily, looking up to meet his gaze, which he immediately redirected to the floor.

He fidgeted his hands together as he mumbled, "the truth is that... I love you..." The last part was so quiet that it was almost inaudible, but Summers managed to make it out.

"Coulson..."

"I know what you're going to say. And I'm sorry. I never meant for this to happen. I didn't even realise it had until I saw you... dying. And in that moment it just hit me. But I'll fight it if you want me to. I don't want to ruin our friendship over this..."

"Coulson, I..."

"Please, call me Phil."

"Phil, I don't want you to fight it. You shouldn't have to do that. And I wouldn't want you to. Because if you did, we wouldn't have a chance to... be together. Phil, I love you, too." She never thought she'd admit that to anyone, much less to him, but she didn't want him to give up on the idea of them being together because he thought his feelings weren't reciprocated.

He looked at her in surprise and confusion. "You... You do?"

"Yes. I... I realised how much I cared about you when you lost your hand. Seeing you in so much pain, I wanted more than anything to help you. That's when I knew. But I thought I could never tell you..."

"I'm so glad you did." He walked back over to the bed, perching on the side of it and taking her hands in his. "You don't know how much it means to me to hear it. I thought we could never... Even after you woke up, I didn't think I had a chance at..." He couldn't find the right words to express his gratitude.

She smiled at him and gripped onto the hands that were holding hers. "Phil, it's okay. I know what you mean. I never thought this would happen either. But it is, and that's all there is to think about. The past is behind us, now we get to look forward to our future. Our future together."

She closed her eyes and leaned forward to kiss him. It was a gentle kiss, but Coulson could feel the amount of affection behind it. He returned it softly, hoping she understood how much he'd longed for this. When they parted, she sighed happily and rested her head against his shoulder. He moved further onto the bed to make it more comfortable for her, ending up lying next to her. As he drew her into his arms, he felt relaxed for the first time in weeks, and it wasn't long before both of them were drifting off to sleep.

XXXXX

Simmons smiled warmly as she watched the security feed from the containment room. She'd watched the scene unfold between Coulson and Summers, a little surprised at first but very moved by the affection they showed to one another. "Fitz, you have to see this," she called to her partner, who was working on the other side of the lab.

"No thanks, I'm busy here," he replied flatly, knowing exactly what was on the feed after having Simmons narrate every detail to him.

"But Fitz, they look adorable together." She didn't want him to miss such a precious sight. He sighed, but she continued, unabated by his disinterest. "I for one never saw it coming. At least not before the... incident." She'd noticed Coulson's devotion to Summers after she was hurt, which gave her quite a big clue, but she'd never noticed anything like that from either of them before that. Although, thinking back, she did remember Summers bugging her a lot when Coulson lost his hand, anxious to know if she could help. She shrugged to herself and returned to watching the monitor.

Fitz glanced up from his work to see Simmons' gaze glued to the screen, a smile playing across her face. He wanted to celebrate the new development with her; he was very happy for Coulson and Summers, and a part of him had always thought that they'd make a cute couple. But he was made slightly uneasy by the knowledge that this would change the team dynamic. He liked everything the way it was, and knowing that this would change things made him wary. He decided to try staying in denial as long as possible, though he knew that was a tactic doomed to fail.

Simmons, on the other hand, couldn't be happier for the two agents. She knew they'd each been through their own trauma, so she thought that coming together to heal was a fantastic idea for both of them. On a more personal note, it was the perfect demonstration that Coulson didn't believe in the fraternisation rules that old SHIELD had implemented, which was excellent news for her and Fitz and the relationship she hoped they could develop.

"Fitz, you don't know what you're missing," she tried again to coax him over. But before he could reply, Daisy came striding into the lab, deflecting Simmons' attention away from Fitz.

"What's going on?" Daisy asked, having heard the end of Simmons' comment.

Simmons' face lit up at having someone new to talk to about this. "Well, there's been a rather exciting development," she said eagerly.

Daisy looked worried. "Summers? Is she okay? Is this about her powers?"

"Oh, no, we still don't know anything about her powers," Simmons reassured. "But come look." She gestured to the monitor, knowing it would be easier to show Daisy than tell her.

Daisy quickly approached the monitor, anxious to know what was on it. As she peered at the image of the containment room, a confused expression fell over her face. "Is that... Coulson?"

"Yep," Simmons replied gleefully.

"And... he's in Summers' bed? With her?" Simmons nodded excitedly. Daisy still looked confused. "Jemma, what is this?"

"Ah, well, perhaps I should show you this..." She clicked some buttons on the computer to rewind the feed, until it displayed an image of the two agents sharing a gentle but very obvious kiss.

Daisy's confusion turned to shock. "Is that what I think it is?"

"If you think it's an image of them kissing then yes, it's exactly what you think it is," she teased.

"So Coulson and Summers are a thing now?"

"Not just that. According to the audio we were listening to earlier, they're in love."

Daisy's shock gave way to a smile. "They are? That's so sweet."

"I know," Simmons agreed with a smile of her own.

There was a pause before Daisy asked, "how's she taking everything?"

"You mean after going through Terrigenesis?" Simmons replied. Daisy nodded. "Honestly, so far it doesn't seem to have phased her. I think she's been more focused on Coulson than anything else. Maybe it hasn't really sunk it yet, or maybe she's just very resilient. I'm not really sure."

Daisy watched the screen closely. "I can't imagine that it wouldn't phase her at all. I mean, it's a major change to go through, both mentally and physically. She's probably just not thinking about it."

"Well she has been rather... preoccupied," Simmons said with a teasing smile. Daisy rolled her eyes.

"Yeah, well, just let me know if she needs anything. If she needs someone to talk to about this, I'm here, okay?"

"Of course. Thank you, Daisy."

Daisy smiled before turning to leave, calling from the doorway, "it's what I'm here for." Simmons watched as Daisy left the lab, knowing she'd be there for Summers no matter what. They were a team, after all, and teams always helped each other. She turned back to the monitor and, seeing that all was quiet for the moment, decided to get on with the project she'd promised to do earlier. After one last glance at the screen, she picked up her tablet and got back to work.


	5. Chapter 5

The first thing Summers registered when she woke up was the warmth wrapped around her. It was a feeling she wasn't used to, and it momentarily startled her, until she felt the strong arms holding her and remembered what had happened. A glow spread in her chest as she realised that it hadn't all been a dream and she was, in fact, lying in the arms of the man she loved.

She was about to settle back into a contented doze when Coulson began to stir next to her. His eyes began to blink open slowly until he was fully awake. She looked up at him and he smiled warmly. "Hi," he said quietly.

"Hi," she responded softly.

"I can't tell you how happy it makes me to be waking up next to you."

"Mmm, me too." She shifted closer to him. "I love you, Phil."

"I love you too, Alexa." He planted a delicate kiss on her forehead as one hand ran slowly through her hair. She sighed happily before gently manoeuvring herself up into a sitting position.

"As much as I hate to say it, we can't lay here all day. We've got stuff to do."

Coulson quickly sat up next to her. "You don't. You're still recovering, remember?"

"Phil, I feel fine. A bit sore, maybe, but fine enough to get up and do something. I don't want to be stuck on bed rest. And I doubt Simmons has any evidence to say that I can't at least stretch my legs."

He sighed. "Well, she did say that her scan found nothing wrong..." He thought it over for a few moments before conceding. "Alright, but I'm staying with you the whole time. Deal?"

She smirked. "Deal. Who said I'd want to go anywhere without you, anyway?" She gave him a quick kiss before shuffling over to the edge of the bed and swinging her feet onto the floor. "Let's hope these things still work," she muttered to herself as she cautiously stood up.

Her legs trembled a little at first, having not been used for over a week, but she soon regained her balance and was able to walk more confidently. Coulson got up and quickly joined her, staying at her side in case she fell.

"Where do you want to go?" he asked.

"Hmm... Kitchen. I could use a snack. Or maybe a proper meal." She unclipped herself from the heart monitor before making her way over to the door and keying the code into the panel to open it. "What do you fancy?"

"A proper meal sounds good. I'll cook. I just need to check with Simmons if there's anything you're not allowed to have." He used his prosthesis to send a message to her, then followed Summers out of the room.

"Sounds good. Let's go." She reached down to entwine their fingers together, before they started to stroll slowly towards the kitchen.

XXXXX

Mack looked up from his sandwich as he heard footsteps coming towards the kitchen. When Coulson and Summers rounded the corner, he almost dropped the food still in his hand. The last time he'd seen her, she'd been pale, weak, practically lifeless, yet here she was strolling casually around the base like nothing had happened. Of course, he'd heard about the whole life-saving Terrigenesis plan from Daisy, but he hadn't believed that her recovery could really be that quick. The sight before him, though, suggested otherwise.

Coulson smiled as he saw the emotions flashing across Mack's face, shock and relief being the most prominent. He knew it was all a lot to take in, for everyone, but it was somewhat amusing to see Mack's momentary struggle for words. Eventually he was able to stammer out, "Summers, it's great to see you. I'm glad you're... okay."

"Thanks, Mack. I'm sorry for putting you guys through so much."

"Hey, it wasn't your fault. I'm just relieved to see you up and about. You're sure it's not too soon?"

"Don't worry, I'm fine. But thank you for being concerned." She gave him a smile as she took a seat opposite him at the table. Glancing over at Coulson, she asked, "any word from Simmons?"

"She's just replied now." He looked down to read the message. "She said: 'Nothing too elaborate. Just simple, easy to digest meals. Try chicken.' Does that work for you?"

"Yeah, sounds perfect. A nice chicken salad sandwich would be lovely. Want some help?"

Coulson was already moving over to the fridge. "No, thanks, I got this. I've made more complicated things than a sandwich before," he teased.

She watched him as he prepared the food, admiring the sleek way he moved, the amount of attention he put into making the food just right. She loved how much pride he took in everything he did, especially when it was for her. She couldn't stop thinking about how lucky she was to have him, and how grateful she was that he wanted her, too.

She was so caught up in her thoughts that she didn't notice the plate being set down in front of her. It was only when Coulson called her name softly that she came back to the moment.

"Yes? Ah, sorry. Thank you for making this for me." She smiled warmly at him as he sat down next to her, his own plate in hand.

He rested his free hand on top of hers as he replied, "my pleasure," before giving her hand a tender squeeze. She saw Mack raise his eyebrows briefly, but he didn't say anything as they began to eat their lunch.

Once they had finished, Coulson put their plates in the sink before offering his arm to Summers to help her up. She accepted, standing up a little stiffly but finding her balance much more quickly this time.

"Where are we going?" Summers asked inquisitively.

"I thought we should go see Simmons, make sure you're okay." He turned to Mack as he added, "sorry to leave you so soon, Mack."

"Hey, don't worry about me. You do what you need to do," the other agent said with a smile.

Coulson and Summers both nodded appreciatively at him before saying goodbye and making their way out of the kitchen towards the lab.

"Maybe Simmons will be able to tell me what my powers are," Summers said as they ambled along the corridor, a hint of excitement in her voice.

"She'll probably want to run some tests first," Coulson reasoned. Realising he was right, her excitement and slight apprehension waned; she was desperate to know what her powers were, but nervous at the same time. She wasn't sure what her reaction was to the news that she'd have to wait a bit longer for the verdict.

Before she could make up her mind, they reached the lab, and had barely gotten two feet inside the door before Simmons was running up to them and hugging Summers tightly.

"I'm so glad you're okay," she said into her friend's ear, then pulled away to look her over and check that everything seemed alright. "How are you feeling?"

"Better. Thanks. Everything still aches a bit but I'm glad to be up."

"What about any abdominal pain? Or headaches? Those could be a sign of something serious. How about any cold or hot flashes? Maybe I should take your temperature..."

"Simmons, relax. I'm fine. Honestly, I didn't expect it to heal this quickly, but then Terrigenesis is beyond what we understand, so I guess I shouldn't be surprised. Besides, didn't you take a bunch of scans? They must tell you that I'm fine."

"I know. I just... wanted to hear it from you," she said with a shy smile.

"I understand," Summers reassured. "So, any news on my powers and what they might be?" She knew the answer was probably no, there wasn't enough information yet, but it didn't hurt to ask.

Simmons' face fell a little. "I'm afraid not. The only thing we've seen of them so far is that blue flash when you broke out of your cocoon."

"Exploded out of your cocoon, more like," quipped Coulson. Summers gave him a look that was part apologetic and part playfully challenging.

"Yes, that may be a more accurate description. Anyway," continued Simmons, "my guess is that they're something to do with bursts of energy, but at the moment that's pure speculation. And with so little experience in this area, I'm not quite sure how to induce them so that we can find out what they are..."

"I do," said a voice from the doorway. Summers turned around to see Daisy standing in the entrance of the lab. She walked over to Summers and gave her a gentle hug. "Glad to see you're doing okay," she said with relief evident in her voice.

"Thanks to you. I'm so grateful for what you did," Summers replied sincerely.

Daisy smiled softly and squeezed her friend's shoulder. "I'm so glad it worked."

Coulson gave the two women a moment before asking, "so you know how to reveal her powers?"

Daisy nodded. "Yeah. Admittedly it's not a great way but it did work for me. Remember when I was still learning how to deal with mine, I found it hard to control them under stressful circumstances? Well, maybe if we created a difficult situation in a safe environment like the containment room, they would come out and we could determine what they are."

Simmons started to object, "but after everything she's been through, is creating more stress really such a good..."

"I want to do it," Summers interrupted.

Coulson stared at her. "What? No. Not happening."

"I really don't think it's wise," Simmons tried to argue. "Your body has endured enough stress. Putting it through even more may have severe consequences."

Summers gave an exasperated look. "I know. But we don't know that much about Inhumans, so this may be the only way, at least for now. And I want to do this sooner rather than later. At the moment, I've still got stress: the stress of knowing I have powers but not knowing what they are or how to control them. At least by getting them out in the open, I can start my training and master them sooner. Please, Simmons. I just hate not knowing."

Simmons looked at her closely, then at Coulson and Daisy, before averting her gaze to some distant point, weighing her options. Eventually, she conceded. "Alright, we'll do it. But you'll be monitored at all times, and if it gets too much we'll stop immediately. Understand?"

Summers nodded happily. "Thank you. When do we start?"

"Well, we can't start for at least a few days. I want some time to take readings on your vitals to make sure you're stable enough for this."

Summers agreed somewhat reluctantly, before Simmons fitted her with an electronic wristband.

"Here, this should get me the data I need. And don't even think about taking it off. Besides, you can't. It needs my biometric data to unlock. Have fun," she said with an annoyingly chirpy smile.

Rolling her eyes, Summers thanked her and headed out of the lab, back towards the kitchen. Coulson caught up with her quickly, an anxious expression on his face.

"Alexa, are you sure this is a good idea?" he asked, concern evident in his voice.

"It'll be fine, Phil. It's not going to be any worse than this anxiety I have over not knowing. I really need to find out as soon as I can, so I'm game for this. Please don't worry about me."

He sighed, but he knew he had to trust her. If she was prepared to do this then he'd support her. He just hoped that neither of them regretted it.


	6. Chapter 6

The next few days passed agonisingly slowly. Between the constant quiet beeping of her wristband, her team's persistent checking up on her and the knowledge of what was to come, Summers didn't think she could get any more frustrated or on edge. The only thing that calmed her down was Coulson's gentle voice, the soothing way he held her. He was as anxious as she was about the... procedure, but he put on a brave face to try and keep her calm about it.

Eventually, when Simmons had collected all the data she wanted and had to reluctantly admit that Summers was fit enough for this, the preparations began. Summers was taken out of her containment room so that extra sensors of all descriptions could be fitted around it to monitor any powered activity. Meanwhile, her wristband was removed and replaced with a series of small electrodes that were stuck all over her body and their signal calibrated to Simmons' tablet. Finally, the last piece of equipment was wheeled in and set up. Summer watched it get plugged in and double checked from the doorway, her hands wringing together nervously. This was it.

"Are you sure this will work?" she asked Simmons and Daisy, who were standing behind her.

"Everyone who's gone in there has relived some past trauma or another," Daisy said logically. "There's no reason to think it won't have the same effect on you."

Summers nodded slowly, then rubbed a hand through her hair. "Yeah," she said with a slight tremor in her voice, then, more confidently, "let's do this."

She made her way into the room and over to the machinery standing in the middle of the floor. She took a moment to study it warily, knowing what it had done before, particularly to the man she loved. The Memory Machine was a curse, but she was using it as a blessing, something to help her discover her powers. Carefully, she climbed onto it and lay back, shuffling up until her head was inside the chamber.

"Are you all settled in?" asked Simmons from the doorway. Summers gave her the thumbs up. "Very good. Now remember, we'll be next door to shield ourselves from any uncontrolled power, but there will be two-way visual and audio contact at all times. Is that okay?" Another thumbs up. "Good. We'll leave you to it."

Simmons nodded at a technician, who made the final checks of the machine, switched it on and hurried out of the room, closing the door quickly behind him. Summers felt an instant migraine as soon as the machine was turned on, but she tried her best to suppress it. A few moments later, Simmons' image came up on the containment room screen.

"Can you hear me?" she asked.

"Yeah," replied Summers through slightly gritted teeth.

"Okay, now I want you to relax. Once you're relaxed, try to think about that day aboard the Helicarrier."

They'd already chosen a memory to use. Summers knew her own injury wasn't stressful enough, but after looking at Coulson, she knew what would be.

She'd been stationed on the Helicarrier just before the Battle of New York, and assigned to a taskforce to find Loki after he'd escaped from Fury's custody. It had been while she was using the security feeds to track his movements after he broke out of the cage that she'd found it. The moment that she never wanted to relive, but knew she would have to today.

As Simmons' voice gently guided her, she shut her eyes and let the machine take her back to that day. Instantly, she heard gunfire, and opened her eyes to see chaos all around her. Her colleagues were running around blindly, firing at enemies that she wasn't sure were there, and panicking about the rapidly dropping altitude. But she couldn't worry about that; she had a job to do. She lowered her gaze back to the computer in front of her and started typing quickly, bringing up camera feed after camera feed. Eventually, she found the one for the area outside the cage and started to play it back, the aim being to work out where Loki had headed to from there. But her heart leaped into her throat at the footage that came up. A familiar agent was addressing Loki, an agent with a face she could never forget. Coulson was confidently approaching the Asgardian with one of the Phase Two guns, looking like he might just win this one. But then it happened.

"No," she whispered, eyes wide with horror as she watched Loki plunge his sceptre through Coulson's chest, straight into his heart. "No!" she screamed as Coulson collapsed to the floor. And then the memory morphed. She was no longer watching the events on a computer screen, but instead she was there, outside the cage, Coulson's dying body at her feet, Loki smirking in front of her. Her rage and despair bubbled up inside her, and she couldn't contain them anymore. "NO!" she shrieked as she raised her hands and sent streams of pure energy straight towards Loki.


End file.
